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Israeli tennis player given visa for Dubai tourney

Israeli Andy Ram will be allowed to compete in a Dubai tennis tournament next week after the Arab country said Thursday it would permit the seventh-ranked doubles player to enter the country.

The United Arab Emirates came under sharp criticism after it banned Israeli women's tennis player Shahar Peer earlier this week from entering the country to participate in the lucrative Dubai Tennis Championships. Organizers said they feared fan anger over Israel's recent military offensive in the Gaza Strip would spill into riots in the Persian Gulf country if Peer were to play.

Tennis governing officials warned that holding future tennis events in Dubai could be in doubt if the Emirates - which does not have diplomatic relations with Israel - continued to ban Israelis. The ATP, which runs next week's men's tournament, gave the UAE a Friday evening deadline to decide whether to grant Ram a visa.

"No player, who qualifies to play an ATP World Tour event, should be denied their right to compete on the basis of ethnicity, nationality or religion and we are happy that the Dubai Tennis Championships and the UAE have shown that they share that view," ATP president, Adam Helfant, said in a statement.

"I hope and believe that from this day forward, athletes from all over the world will be able to compete in the UAE and anywhere else in the world without discrimination of any kind," Peer said in a statement.

Ram's lawyer, Amit Naor, said the Israeli was playing in France and had not yet been notified about the decision. "I hope that this is a breakthrough and marks the end to these types of things," he said.

Top past and present tennis players had spoken out against the Emirates' ban on Israelis - including Billie Jean King and Venus and Serena Williams - saying sports and politics should not mix.

"I think it's wonderful that Andy Ram has the opportunity to play. We are all athletes and we have no platform. We are here to play tennis, we are entertainers, and I am happy he has the opportunity to do that," Venus Williams said Thursday after defeating Elena Dementieva, of Russia, in the women's tournament, which ends Saturday.

Her sister, top-ranked Serena, said: "Obviously, I am not for discrimination. Everyone bleeds red blood and everyone should get an equal opportunity."

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The head of the Emirates consular affairs department said a "special permit" had been granted for Ram, but did not give a specific reason why Ram was allowed to participate and not Peer.

"This comes as part of UAE's commitment to organize international sport, educational and economic events and activities without putting any boundaries in front of the participation of individuals from states represented in the United Nations," Sultan al-Qurtasi was quoted by the country's state news agency.

Despite its glitzy skyscrapers and desire to host big-time global sporting events, Dubai has struggled to merge its international party appeal with its conservative Muslim values. Canadian author Margaret Atwood also announced this week that she was pulling out of next week's Dubai literary festival because organizers banned a novel by a British author that references homosexuality.

Larry Scott, the head of the Women's Tennis Association, told The Associated Press that the Emirates has guaranteed him that Peer would be allowed to participate in the tournament next year. But Scott said he wanted Emirati officials to put that promise in writing.

"Were encouraged by this statement and the apparent change in policy by the tournament and the UAE government, but before I'm going to put Dubai on our 2010 calendar 100 percent there are additional guarantees, assurances and measures we are going to require to just make 100 percent sure what happened last week couldn't possibly happen again," Scott said.

The Dubai tournament could still face a fallout from its decision to ban Peer. Scott said the WTA would decide whether to penalize the Dubai tournament, which could include fines. He did not elaborate but said a board of directors meeting was scheduled for Friday.

"The player has been harmed and it was clear breach of tournament rules and contract with the tournament and it needs to be dealt with," Scott said.

The Tennis Channel had already canceled plans to televise the women's tournament, and the Wall Street Journal Europe withdrew as one of its sponsors. A prominent group of Jewish American leaders also urged WTA to punish the UAE for banning Peer.

The ban on Israeli athletes is just the latest fallout for Israel from its three-week-long offensive against militants in Gaza. Nearly 1,300 Palestinians, including hundreds of civilians, were killed in the fighting. The operation was heavily criticized around the world, and Peer had faced protests over it during a recent tournament in New Zealand.